Jun 01, 2012

Dana Point surfer, 13, rides waves for 365 consecutive days

When Meg Roh caught her first wave Friday morning it marked the completion of a remarkable quest. The seventh-grader, who is 13, had been surfing every day for an entire year.

That's 365 consecutive days of paddling out, regardless of how big or small the waves might be, how cold or wind-blown the weather might be, how weary or unmotivated the girl might be.

I talked briefly to Sue Hann, Meg's mother, hoping to get a comment from Meg. But Hann had just dropped her daughter off at school.

"I took her surfing at 6:30 and dropped her off at 8:30, because she didn't want to miss a day of school either," Hann said. (Meg usually surfs with her stepfather, Sam Hann.)

Most surfers would agree that the feat is incredible, largely because conditions on some days are so poor and miserable that even the most passionate wave riders cannot find reason to paddle out. It's also noteworthy that Meg did not miss a day of school during this stretch, and that she has maintained a 4.0 grade average.

Laylan Connelly of the Orange County Register on Thursday night posted a full-length feature on Meg. I borrowed from Connelly's piece for a shorter story that posted Friday morning on the GrindTv website.

In the piece Dennis Kemp, Meg's board maker, stated: "For a girl that young to have that kind of dedication and fortitude, to come out here every day — good, bad, whatever — it's phenomenal. There's a champ in that little body there just waiting to bust out."

To be sure, Meg's story is one of dedication; of setting goals and sticking to them.

"On the way to school I asked her how it felt to have surfed 365 days and she had this big smile on her face," Sue Hann recalled. "She's normally kind of reserved, but she was like, 'Yeah, I feel really good. I just feel like it's a good thing."

With that she was off to school.

-- Image of Meg on her longboard is courtesy of Paul Bersebach / Orange County Register. To read the entire OC Register story and to view more images, please click on the link provided above.